West Ham look to loosen the purse strings in order to make European nights a regular fixture

Avoiding costly mistakes in the transfer market has been a significant theme throughout David Moyes’ second spell as West Ham United manager so far.

Hefty fees spent on the likes of Felipe Anderson and Sebastian Haller only helped to bring about sporadic success under the management of Manuel Pellegrini, and Moyes’ ability to make the most of the players at his disposal, along with a series of shrewd, less-heralded signings, has contributed to the Hammers securing European football in back-to-back seasons for only the third time in the club’s history.

Low-cost additions Craig Dawson and Vladimir Coufal have added on-field consistency along with useful squad depth, and more expensive acquisitions such as Jarrod Bowen and Tomas Soucek have been given clearly defined roles by their manager, meaning that adapting to life in the Premier League has been a fairly straightforward process.

Striking the right balance between high-profile signings from top European leagues and cheaper pick-ups from the EFL has served West Ham well over the past two seasons, so it is perhaps no great surprise that it is an approach they have maintained over this summer’s transfer window so far.

Alphonse Areola is very much a known commodity after spending last season on loan at the London Stadium from Paris Saint-Germain. The 29-year-old was understudy to Lukasz Fabianski in the 2021/22 season, yet he is expected to challenge for a starting berth now that his move has been made permanent for a fee in the region of £9m.

The French goalkeeper’s post-shot expected goals minus goals allowed total of +3.4 was the third best of any ‘keeper in the Europa League last season as West Ham reached the semi-finals of the competition. With Fabianski having turned 37 in April, and having endured injury struggles over the past two seasons, adding another goalkeeper to the squad who the club are familiar with appears to be more smart business.

Flynn Downes may be less familiar to supporters but he is certainly accustomed to his new club. The boyhood Hammers’ fan has been acquired from Swansea City to provide greater competition in midfield following the retirement of Mark Noble and the club’s decision not to sign loanee Alex Kral permanently, although the early promise Downes showed in South Wales indicates he may not settle for a bit-part role for long.

Last season, Downes adapted efficiently to a possession-heavy style of football at Swansea, helping him earn a move to the Premier League for a fee that could rise to more than £10m less than a year after departing League One Ipswich Town for just a fraction of the price.

Whilst Downes understandably does not yet possess the ball-winning capabilities of his new captain Declan Rice, it could well be that he is viewed as a long-term successor to the England international should speculation about Rice’s future materialise into anything more concrete in transfer windows to come.

West Ham’s most expensive signing as of yet has been that of Moroccan centre-back Nayef Aguerd from Rennes for a reported £30m . The arrival of the 26-year-old reinforces an area of the squad that Moyes already has plenty of options to choose from, yet the fact that Aguerd is left-footed, coupled with the fact that fbREF ranks him in the 82nd percentile for aerials duels won in Europe’s top five leagues, should mean he establishes himself as a regular starter.

An ankle injury picked up in the 3-1 pre-season defeat to Rangers means that it will possibly be some time before Aguerd is available to take part in competitive action, but West Ham’s prospective transfer business in the mean time should mean that supporters do not have to defer their excitement for long.

The potential additions that the Hammers look set to make before the end of August represent something of a departure from the transfer policy under Moyes so far, as they either have no obvious re-sale value or are ambitious targets that are seemingly coveted by wealthier rivals.

It has been suggested that Eintracht Frankfurt’s experienced wide player Filip Kostic is deliberating over swapping the Bundesliga for the Premier League, and it is easy to see how both his versatility and experience make him an attractive proposition for potential suitors.

The Serbian has racked up an impressive 63 assists playing as both a winger and as a wing-back in his four seasons with Eintracht, and should he opt to join a West Ham outfit that he helped to knock out of Europe last season, Kostic would instantly offer an upgrade at either left wing-back or on the left side of midfield.

Even more surprisingly, it’s been confirmed that the London Stadium will be the destination of highly-rated Italian striker Gianluca Scamacca. The Sassuolo forward was been linked with some of Europe’s elite clubs including PSG and Arsenal, suggesting that the potential £35.5m transfer that was completed on Tuesday is something of a coup for the east London club.

Attempting to find adequate competition in attack for Michail Antonio has been a persistent problem for Moyes since the Scotsman returned to the London Stadium in December 2019. Although Antonio had a rare relatively injury-free campaign last season, he only found the net five times in all competitions after the turn of the year, and with West Ham facing another packed fixture list this season, alternatives are needed.

Whilst finding back-up for the Jamaican international has been a talking point throughout previous transfer windows, both the fee involved and competition beaten off in securing Scamacca’s signature could indicate that West Ham are in fact attempting to replace Antonio rather than find him an understudy.

The seven-cap Italy international scored 16 times in Serie A last season, and his 6ft 5in frame should mean that he fits relatively easily into a team that prides itself on a strong record of scoring from set-pieces and is never afraid to get balls into the opposition box – no team scored more headed goals than West Ham’s 14 in the 2020/21 Premier League season.

Such is the nature of the transfer window, Hammers’ fans will no doubt feel as though further additions are still required should Moyes and his team intend to compete in the league as well as the domestic cups and Europe next season.

However, there can be little doubt that the former Everton and Manchester United boss is receiving a level of financial backing unlike that of his previous transfer windows in charge, and should he find a way to incorporate some of his more costly additions as well as he has cheaper arrivals, West Ham may well be preparing for yet another crack at continental competition in a years’ time.

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